Cardcaptors Alternative Syaoran
by AnjinForever
Summary: A completely different universe story with the same cast. A story of fate, struggle, relationships and determination.
1. 1st Thread

Syaoran awoke and lay, staring at the ceiling, for quite some time in the bright room. Spring was already moving toward summer. The sun was still only just rising, but the window of the room was positioned to catch even the first dawning rays. It was too warm under the covers with the sunlight coming in and his pajamas on. Despite that, he was drenched in cold sweat.

A knock came at the door, lightly, and then Eriol entered. He was wearing pants but no shirt, and he had a blue towel draped over his shoulders.

"The shower's free… are you going to get up?" he said, eyes and voice flat as ever. He went and sat on his bed without waiting for an answer and began toweling off his hair.

"I had a dream. It was important…" Syaoran said, sitting up and putting a hand to his head as the room spun a little. Everything went fuzzy for a few seconds and then it was back to normal. The last shreds of the strange feeling were flowing away like mist in the sunlight. Syaoran drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Oh?" Eriol said, pausing his toweling to arch an eyebrow. Syaoran had been around him long enough to know that this was the highest level of surprise he would ever show on a normal basis. It would take a meteor falling right in front of him to get more than that out of him. Eriol looked down at the sunlight that filtered in through the branches of the tree outside their window. He was reading it for signs. Syaoran could count at least 20 things Eriol could pull signs out of. He had more than just a gift for foretelling, though only Syaoran could see things in his dreams.

"A fateful encounter? Besides that it looks like a normal school day… Maybe some random girl will confess to you. We're fifth-graders now, it's bound to happen sooner or later," Eriol said, deadpan. He was usually bored with the subject of the future. Most of the time he couldn't be bothered to foretell since small things weren't worth the energy and important things would come to him without him needing to look.

"A meeting… Maybe it'll be the person in my dream… I dreamt I was in Tokyo, walking down a busy street full of people. As I was walking I passed by one person, and as we drew near each other time seemed to slow down and all the people vanished until it was just me and that other person. We looked into each other's eyes, and we were about to speak with each other when suddenly the other person turned and ran away. When I looked behind me…" Syaoran put his hand back to his head as a small wave of dizziness came over him again. "Behind me, the streets of Tokyo were full of ghosts."

"Hmm~" Eriol still showed no interest as he finished toweling off. "So some girl is going to confess to you then get scared off by your reputation. Case closed." Though there was no change in his voice, a very small smile of humor was on his face. Syaoran looked at him for a while before he also gave a small smile and began pulling off his shirt and heading for the bathroom.

"You're probably right," Syaoran said, as he walked out.

***

Mizuki-san had breakfast ready for them when they were both dressed and ready. Eriol complemented the food and made small talk with her while Syaoran ate in silence. Mizuki wasn't related to them in any way. Rather, she was a student of magic under their father, Clow Reed. Their father had left them in her care when his business as a powerful mage had taken him away on an extended leave. In fact, it had been years since they had had any news of their father.

Even though they shared a father, Eriol and Syaoran were only half-brothers. Clow had married two cousins who had agreed to share him between them since their love for each other was also strong. Eriol took after Clow, with dark hair and eyes as well as the talent for foretelling and protective magic that was Clow's specialty. Syaoran took after his mother, who was a well-known Taoist who studied the mystic arts in China. The fact that they weren't normal was the talk of Tomoeda, but no one had ever discovered exactly what it was about the boys that was different. Well, almost no one.

"Already done, Syaoran? You should slow down and enjoy the food a little bit more…" Mizuki said, tilting her head and giving Syaoran a wan smile. Syaoran bowed his head a little.

"Gochisousama…" he murmured, then stood up. Mizuki watched him for a moment, then sighed and handed him a lunch.

"Have a good day at school," she said, and Syaoran nodded. Eriol also arose, accepted his lunch with a smile and bobbed his head in a slight bow before following his brother to the door.

***

"You should talk to her more…" Eriol said, as they walked the familiar route to Tomoeda Elementary. "She's just as stuck with us as we're stuck with her. If you live this long with someone and keep your silence all the time she'll start to think you hate her or something."

Syaoran remained silent. Eriol had been raised by Clow in England for most of his young childhood. He had been taught the pleasantries of society and was quite the actor despite his normally stone cold presence. Syaoran, on the other hand, had been raised by the two Mrs. Reeds in China. Since they thought the 'silent little warrior' type to be more cute than the educated child they had raised Syaoran on martial arts and magic training. They were both evenly matched physically and magically, but Eriol didn't know his way around a fight… nor did Syaoran know his way around a party.

Actually, this very fact was what united them the most as brothers despite not sharing the same mother. They balanced each other out perfectly, each acting as the missing piece for the other. From the first day they had been brought together to live until their father came to reclaim them they had forged a strong bond. Now Eriol was the only person Syaoran would openly speak to, and Syaoran was the only one who ever saw Eriol without his polite mask of civility.

There was only one other person in the world that could make them lower their defenses. One person who made them feel like normal human beings. That person was…

"Daidouji-san!" Eriol exclaimed.

They were just arriving in front of the school when a small limousine also pulled up in front. A body guard stepped out first, and held the door so that Tomoyo Daidouji could step out.

Long black hair, perfect white skin, an angelic, innocent face. Every gesture Tomoyo made was delicate. Every expression cherubic. Not just the Reed brothers, but every other boy on campus was smitten with the heavenly ojou-sama.

"Ara, the Reed brothers. Good morning," Tomoyo said, tilting her head and giving a soft, refreshing smile.

"Good morning, Lady Tomoyo," Eriol said, putting one hand to his heart and giving a bow in perfect gentlemanly form. Tomoyo put one hand to her mouth and gave a small laugh.

"My, such formality is unnecessary, Eriol-kun," she said. She then looked at Syaoran.

"G… Good… morning…" Syaoran murmured, avoiding her gaze and blushing.

"Good morning, Syaoran-kun," Tomoyo replied, smiling again. She was the only one in the whole school that referred to them by 'kun'. Everyone else still used their first names since throwing 'Reed-san' around wouldn't get you far with them always walking together. However, it was always 'Syaoran-san' and 'Eriol-san' with everyone but Tomoyo.

"You seem to be in high spirits today, Lady Tomoyo," Eriol said, falling into step beside her as they walked toward the school. Syaoran walked beside Eriol and a little behind, looking at the ground and blushing to his ears. There were times he would give anything to talk naturally to people like Eriol did.

"Yes. Last night my Uncle Fujitaka's family moved back to Tomoeda… they've been living in Osaka since I was little, but now they're planning to live here for quite a while. They have a daughter my age, and she'll be attending Tomoeda Elementary from here on. We've been pen-pals ever since we met at a family reunion, so I'm very excited to see if she's going to be in our class," Tomoyo said, touching her cheek with one hand and giving a smile of pure bliss as she spoke.

Eriol caught Syaoran's eye and raised one eyebrow. Syaoran merely shrugged. Perhaps this was tied in to the fateful encounter Eriol had predicted. Perhaps not.

"Well, if your cousin is as charming as you then I'm sure we all will have reason to be excited today, right?" Eriol said, smiling widely. Syaoran missed a step, then shook his head and glared at the ground. Tomoyo just kept on walking. She was used to Eriol's blatant compliments.

"I assure you, Sakura-chan is ten times as charming as I am… maybe a hundred?" Tomoyo said, again putting one hand to her cheek and getting lost in a dreamy gaze. Eriol and Syaoran exchanged another glance, this time both of them wore confused expressions.

***

"Syaoran-san! Eriol-san! Good morning!" Naoki's excited voice greeted the Reed brothers as they entered the classroom. Both winced and merely bobbed their heads silently in response to the greeting. Naoki, the supernatural-obsessed girl, had quickly latched onto them after discovering that they were far from normal. Neither of the boys was sure exactly how much she knew about their true nature, but even a little was too much, with the way she followed them around.

Tomoyo entered behind them and managed to engage Naoki's attention long enough for Eriol and Syaoran to slip away to their seats. Eriol sat near the front due to his weaker eyesight, while Syaoran sat near the back, close to the large windows looking out over the school grounds.

After everyone had more or less taken their seats the teacher walked in. Rika, the class president, led everyone in the daily routine;

"Stand! Bow!" she said, her voice mature and refined for a girl of her age… though not quite so refined as Tomoyo.

"Good morning class," Terada-sensei said, after everyone had bowed and sat back down. "Today we have a surprise; a new friend has just moved in and she'll be coming to our class now. I want you to all welcome her warmly and make her feel at home here in Tomoeda…"

Syaoran could already see stars appearing in Tomoyo's eyes.

Terada-sensei went and opened the door, and asked for whoever it was still in the hall to come inside. He then walked back in, followed by a brown-haired, green-eyed girl. Tomoyo gave out a long sigh of exultation.

"This is Kinamoto Sakura-chan. Everyone, let's be friends with her…" Terada-sensei said, gesturing to the new girl.

Syaoran looked from Tomoyo to Sakura and then back. He could see Eriol doing the same.

'This is the girl Tomoyo said was ten times more charming than she is?' Syaoran thought, quirking one eyebrow. He and Eriol glanced at each other and the same thought flashed through their minds:

'Not… even close…'

Sakura didn't seem the least bit shy, and she smiled broadly during her introduction, scratching the back of her head in an open, almost goofy pose.

"I'm Kinamoto Sakura… My Dad got transferred here to work for the government, but it looks like we'll be staying here for a few years so I guess I'll be able to get to know you all really well. I like gym and stuff like that but I'm no good with math so I guess I'll need someone to tutor me or something like that," she said, while laughing lightly at herself. The other students also laughed and it became quickly apparent that Sakura would fit right in.

Eriol adjusted his glasses with a chagrined expression as Sakura gave her introduction.

'Tomoyo has some weird tastes if she thinks this girl is charming… She's friendly enough, but she looks like a boy with that short hair and personality. Interest: Zero' he thought, though he kept his face a mask of open friendliness for the new transfer student, and laughed at her comment about math.

"Well, looks like you'll do just fine, Kinamoto-san. Why don't you go ahead and take a seat over behind Reed-san," Terada-sensei said, then corrected himself "Reed Syaoran-san, that is. We're lucky enough to have two of them."

Syaoran felt the grip of fate. Eriol as well, and he narrowed his eyes.

Sakura tilted her head as Terada-sensei said Syaoran's full name, and her eyes widened a little. She then walked toward Syaoran's desk, and stopped next to him, looking down at him with an unreadable expression.

"You're… Reed Syaoran-san?" she asked, politely but with a hint of something strange in her tone.

Syaoran nodded silently, eyes wide. He cursed fate for throwing so many random things at him and his brother. Just once he would have liked to have had a normal school day without things like this happening.

"Then… Reed Eriol is also…?" Sakura began, trailing off without finishing her question. One of the students sitting by Syaoran gave Sakura a questioning gaze but pointed at Eriol. Sakura followed the student's point and gazed at Eriol for a moment. Then she looked back at Syaoran, and for an instant Syaoran saw a look of pain tinged with sadness cross Sakura's green eyes. Then it was gone. Tomoyo called Sakura's attention and greeted her with a brilliant smile. The moment was past. Sakura took her seat and that was that.

***

"You want to know about the Kemono Kyoudai?" Chiharu asked, as Sakura pressed the girls in the class for details on the Reed brothers during one of the breaks between classes. Sakura tilted her head at the odd nickname.

"'Monster Brothers'…? Why do you call them that?" she asked, looking a little upset that they would be given such a name.

"You don't know? I thought you knew them from the way you looked at them when you were taking your seat. Everyone around here does. Those two walk strange ways… I guess I can't explain it, but we all go by Naoki's story… Naoki knows their true colors, right Naoki?" Chiharu looked to Naoki, who adjusted her glasses and got starry-eyed as she told her story:

"Well, one night I was coming back late from the library. I had to pass in front of the graveyard. There was a full moon out so I could see everything clearly, even with my eyesight. The Reed brothers had been in our class for a year or two so I knew what they looked like. Anyway, I clearly saw them that night, right in the middle of the graveyard… And all around them were glowing blue lights, which can only be one thing…" Naoki said.

Sakura's eyes were getting watery and her expression was aghast as she waited for Naoki to deliver the last phrase. Tomoyo carefully put her hands up to her own ears… she knew her cousin well enough to know what was coming next.

"Those blue lights the Reed brothers were surrounded by were… GHOSTS!" Naoki exclaimed.

"HOOOOOEEEEEEEEEE~!" Sakura screamed, causing all the girls to clap their hands to their ears. Tomoyo looked unphased.

"S… Sakura-chan…" the girls all murmured, wincing in pain.

"Hoe~… Sorry, stuff like that is my weakness…" Sakura said, eyes watery. Tomoyo put a hand on her shoulder and she relaxed a little.

"It's alright Sakura-chan, the Reed brothers are actually good people. I doubt they really have anything to do with such spooky things," Tomoyo murmured soothingly. Naoki's eyes flashed at this, and a small frown appeared on her face. Tomoyo met her gaze with a calm smile, and Naoki let it go, for Sakura's sake.

"Well… they're nice, and very mysterious, that's about all we really know about them…" Naoki said, putting special emphasis on the word 'mysterious' and looking strangely starry-eyed.

"Why did you want to know, anyhow?" Rika said, speaking up for the first time. Her voice was the same gentle, mature tone she used all the time, but Sakura detected an odd hint of something beneath the surface… more than normal interest in her answer. Sakura's eyes almost twitched into a surprised expression, but she controlled it before anyone would notice and traded it for a air headed blank look.

"Huh… why was it?… I forgot…" Sakura said, laughing a little at herself. She looked so goofy all the other girls laughed. Rika laughed last of all, holding one hand up near her mouth in a soft fist, giving her a very cute but refined look. Sakura felt some tension leave her. Whatever it had been that she had heard in the other girl's voice had to have been her imagination. But then Rika opened her eyes, which had been shut while she was laughing and looked directly at Sakura with a strange glint in her eyes.

"You're an interesting person… Kinamoto Sakura-chan…" she said, but her tone held nothing but comedy. The other girls didn't notice, and Tomoyo even nodded in agreement.

"Isn't she just?" Tomoyo said, giving a little sigh.

***

Lunch break found Syaoran and Eriol sitting on a blanket on the grass in front of Tomoeda High, which was next door to their own school, separated only by a fence. With them were two high schoolers; Tsukishiro Yukito and Akizuki Nakuru. The four of them had been together since Eriol and Syaoran had moved to Tomoeda. All of them possessed magical power, and they often worked together to resolve any supernatural problems that cropped up… and a surprising amount of them did.

Calm and friendly Yukito provided long-range support with holy arrow magic while energetic Nakuru use a crescent-moon scythe and close-range. That left Eriol as the kekkaishi (barrier/shield maker) and Syaoran to fill in wherever he was needed with his short sword or Tao magic. The four were an incredibly well-matched team, so they had all naturally come to be close friends… Yukito and Nakuru were naturally more open and happy with their lot as mages than the two boys, so they supported the Reed brothers every day as much as possible.

"Hey, Tsukishiro, so this is where you go for lunch…" a deep male voice floated over the grounds. Its owner was a tall boy with dark hair and a nice enough face. Both Eriol and Syaoran saw some resemblance in him, but they couldn't tell who it was he resembled.

"Oh, Touya, come over and sit down!" Yukito said, giving a bright, open smile. Touya nodded and sat down, opening his lunch. He sat near Yukito and opposite Nakuru, who was eying him like a cat looking at a new toy.

"Well well, our new transfer student Kinamoto Touya-kyun's come to keep us company! I could eat three bowls of rice today…" Nakuru purred, then chuckled to herself. Touya looked creeped out, Yukito blushed, and Syaoran and Eriol exchanged a confused look.

"This is Kinamoto Touya… he's a new transfer student to our class," Yukito explained, beaming happily.

"Then, he must be the brother of…" Eriol began, when they were interrupted as everyone looked curiously at someone who had just shown up. It was Kinamoto Sakura. She looked like she had been running.

"Reed… Eriol… and Reed… Syaoran…" she panted, trying to catch her breath but wanting to talk over it. The Reed brothers looked at each other then back at Sakura, both speaking at the same time. Eriol sounded amused, Syaoran confused.

"Kinamoto… Sakura?" they said, in unison. Everyone was sharing odd looks, but suddenly the scene seemed to freeze as Sakura withdrew a small black square from her pocket and held it up. It folded out to reveal a police-badge like leather case with a golden symbol embossed on it. Up the right side was written 'KEREBEROS', while down the left was the name 'KINAMOTO SAKURA'. There were three 'X's in gold under the golden emblem.

"Under orders from Kereberos, my brother and I have been sent to halt your unauthorized use of magic. And of the other two people with you…" Sakura said, all in a rush. She sounded like she was afraid of being interrupted and, though her voice carried some conviction, it was rather weak.

A chill seemed to settle over them. Yukito's face looked like it was made of stone, his eyes like dark clouds. Nakuru was baring her teeth with eyes like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. Eriol had lost his polite mask to a face of pale, frozen fury and disgust. Syaoran's expression was the most mild, as his mind went numb and his body prepared for a fight. His right hand twitched, but he made no move.

"Kereberos no inume…" Eriol spat, treating each word like it was the worst kind of insult.

"So… you're really them…" Touya said, looking a little disappointed, but it wasn't clear with whom. He looked at his sister and sighed. "Sit down Sakura, have you eaten lunch yet? We should take this a little slower…"

"Onii-chan! The girls in class even know that they're different… They're not being careful with their powers! We need to…!" Sakura said, looking pained.

"So…" Eriol cut her off, his voice shaking a little "You've already been sniffing around, wanko-chan? Is that the whole reason you moved here? And poor Lady Tomoyo thought you were coming here for her sake…"

"Don't talk to my sister like that…" Touya said, his voice dangerous for a moment as he glared at Eriol. Then he took in and let out a deep breath, trying to control himself. "Listen. Every magic user Kereberos deals with starts out the same as you guys. You think we're here to put collars on you and treat you like animals. That's not it. Japan's in hard times right now. There are several countries that would like to see us all just disappear. We're not even allowed to have a formal army, and America's only agreeing to protect us under certain conditions. If they find out how many high-level magic users live here… we could lose their support and even make them hostile. Kereberos is here to regulate magic usage for Japan's protection…"

"Japan is a country inhabited by many spirits and demons…" Yukito said, his voice sad as he looked at Touya. The two of them seemed like the most level-headed in the situation, and the others left it up to them to negotiate the two sides since nobody else could trust themselves to speak. "… the magic of Japan is not something that can be controlled so easily. Nor should it be. Restrain human mages and the wild spirits will run wild, restrain the wild spirits and nature will die. Leaving things to their natural order… the order that has always governed this country… is the only way for Japan to survive."

"Japan is a capitalist country on the cutting edge of the modern world. We're working toward the day when all supernatural things will be repressed… so that everyone can just live a normal, fulfilling, happy, wealthy life like normal humans should," Touya said. When he saw the horrified faces of the four magic users he narrowed his eyes "Or do you want me to believe you're happy as you are now? You're happy with the lives you've been given… the fates that you were assigned without a choice?"

This cut them. Even though Nakuru and Yukito were old enough to withstand being different from everyone else they had all passed through hard times day and night because of their powers. Days of solitude, nights of dangerous spirit busting… But then Syaoran spoke up, surprising everyone. His eyes were full of accusation as he looked at Touya.

"But… you two don't look exactly happy with your own lots… do you?" he asked, his tone mellow but also carrying the same accusation as his eyes. Touya and Sakura both flinched slightly. Then they looked at each other, sharing an unspoken consensus. Touya stood and went over to his sister, and together they began to walk off. Before completely leaving, though, Touya paused and looked back at the four magic-users.

"Think about it, is all we're asking right now. Don't just go by your first impression… you need to think things like this out. More than just your lives are riding on this decision," he said, not looking at anyone. He then turned and the two of them left. Sakura said nothing, but gave them one last, pained look over her shoulder.

"What's there to think about?" Eriol said, after Touya and Sakura had left. His voice was bitter. "Spinel, the organization our father created, is 100% opposed to government plans like Kereberos that are trying to control magic. The use of magic should be decided by the flows of nature and the divinations of wise archmages such as father and that other woman… the Dimensional Witch. It's not like asking or even threatening us is going to change or minds about that…"

"No need to preach to the choir, Eri-kun…" Nakuru said, her face showing her distaste at the whole prospect of Kereberos even as she continued eating. "What a waste of a hottie… and to think I was gonna show him around town."

Syaoran and Yukito both had the same depressed expressions on their faces. Syaoran was just tired of having to deal with things that came up because of his powers, whereas Yukito had a different reason.

"Touya didn't seem like a bad person… I'll talk to him," he said, after the four of them were silent for a time. The other three looked at him in surprise and he gave them a weak smile "I'm a talker… I can't accept situations like this without trying to negotiate a little more. Maybe we can meet halfway. Really there's nothing we've been doing besides controlling the nature forces in Tomoeda and keeping them from harming the citizens. There's nothing in that the government should be angry about."

"Yuki-chan is so mature~," Nakuru said, sighing with a bored expression. Lunch was basically over, so she began cleaning up the area and packing up her bento-box. "I doubt it's even us they're after. It's probably that one thing… right?" she looked at Eriol as she said this. Eriol narrowed his eyes in thought and nodded slowly.

"You're probably right… there's nothing else in this area that would attract the government's interest…" he looked at his right hand, recalling, "The Tomoeda Matsuri… it keeps showing up in my divinations but I don't understand what it is or when it will happen. The only thing that's clear is that it's going to be something that will affect the lives of everyone who gets involved in ways we can't imagine. I wish I could see the signs more clearly." Suddenly, he looked at Syaoran, "You should try dreaming about that instead of dreaming of random girls in Tokyo! Then maybe we'd know what's going to happen!"

He was kidding, and all of them chuckled a little at it, and then they disbanded to return to class. They waved good-bye, and then separated. As Syaoran and Eriol were walking back Eriol noticed that Syaoran was even more pensive than normal. He stopped and was about to ask his brother if there was something particular on his mind, but Syaoran spoke first.

"I know now… When you mentioned it I suddenly remembered…" he said, cryptically. Eriol tilted his head, but Syaoran continued after a short pause. "The girl in the dream. The girl in Tokyo… It was Kinamoto Sakura."

***

The Reed brothers managed to avoid Sakura for the remainder of the day despite her sitting so close to Syaoran. For her own part she also seemed distant, and the few times she glanced at either one of them it was with that same look of pain and depression. Rika, looking back at one point, caught sight of this look and piqued one eyebrow before returning her focus to Terada sensei. Tomoyo may as well have not heard the lesson at all, as she gazed at Sakura starry-eyed the whole time.

After school Eriol and Syaoran split up to go to their clubs. Eriol was taking Archery with Yukito as a volunteer assistant coach, while Syaoran was in the Kendo club with Nakuru as an instructor.

Just as Syaoran was getting into his uniform for the club he saw a new face entering hesitantly. There was a clatter as Syaoran's shinai fell to the ground from his hands as he gaped in surprise. Kinamoto Sakura had entered the dojo. She looked back and forth until she caught sight of the sensei for the dojo, then walked over to him. Nakuru walked in behind her but passed by her with only a disgusted look.

"Looks like wanko-chan wants to learn how to use a sword..." she said, bitterly, to Syaoran as she also put on some equipment and picked out a shinai. "Think I should give her some one-on-one attention?"

"Don't let emotions infect your style..." Syaoran said solemnly, as he finished suiting up. Nakuru looked at him with a wry grin.

"My little warrior is so mature~!" Nakuru said, suddenly hugging Syaoran and trying to snuggle him. He quickly slipped out of her grasp, but their commotion had attracted the attention of the other students, including Sakura. Sighing, Syaoran looked off to the side to avoid everyone's eyes while Nakuru made some kind of apology for the ruckus.

"Reed-kun, since you've learned all the forms already you may as well get with the new girl. You can bring her up to speed," the sensei said, gesturing for Sakura to join Syaoran. The two of them looked at each other wordlessly for a moment, then Sakura went off to the locker room to change into one of the smaller female uniforms. Syaoran took the opportunity to rein in his emotions completely. When he had a blade in his hand he felt nothing.

"... youroshiku," Sakura said, uncertainly as she approached Syaoran, now wearing the proper uniform. Syaoran bowed his head formally, then gestured to the rack of bamboo shinai.

"Pick one that feels right in your hand," Syaoran said. Sakura seemed a little surprised by his cool manner, but she obeyed. It took her a minute or so of testing out the different shinai, but she finally found one that felt good.

"Have you ever done any kendo?" Syaoran asked, walking back to an open area of the dojo where they could practice. Sakura nodded, then tilted her head a little.

"Well... I've held a sword before, but not one like this..." she said, looking a little unsure. Syaoran didn't react. He didn't care. He didn't care about anything, when there was a blade in his hand.

"Copy my stance..." he said, passing right over Sakura's comment. He placed his dominant foot forward, using his other foot as to stable his stance. He kept very little weight on his front foot, looking ready to leap forward at any moment. Sakura looked at him and tried her best to stand exactly as he was. If Syaoran had been paying any attention he may have been pleasantly surprised at how well Sakura was able to mimic the stance.

"Now take the shinai in both hands..." Syaoran continued, gripping his own shinai tightly "... raise it up..." he did so, raising it over his head until it was pointing at heaven "... and then strike downward while stepping forward forcefully."

"HA!" he suddenly let out a yell as he brought his foot forward with a stomp and brought his shinai down in a crushing downward blow. Sakura could clearly hear the wind whistling past the bamboo blade even though she was a foot or two away from him. She gave a little jump at his yell, also.

"Go ahead and try it," he said, resuming his ready stance. Sakura nodded. She brought her own shinai up over her head and then brought it down while giving a little step forward.

"Ei!" she said, not really putting her gut into it like Syaoran had. She looked to Syaoran to see his verdict, but he barely seemed to see her.

"Don't stop. Keep doing that practice. A thousand strikes a day is normal for a true student of kendo," he said. Sakura nodded and began doing the strike over and over, though her voice never gained any confidence. After about 7 strikes Syaoran moved over to her and gestured for her to stop. Without the slightest hesitation or asking her permission, he then stepped behind her and embraced her from behind. Well, not quite embraced... rather he wrapped his arms around her to place his hands over hers on the shinai (he had set his own down before walking over). Sakura let out a startled 'Hoe~!' and blushed, but Syaoran's grip was firm and trying to shake him off would just cause her to brush up against him even more.

"Your strikes are meaningless. Are you really here to seriously study kendo?" Syaoran murmured, since his face was close to her ear. He still had the same stone cold tone he had been using, and he may as well have been talking to a horse he was training. "How you handle a blade is a mirror of your soul. Weapons are power, and power is a force of nature. Therefore you must act as if you are part of that force. Visualize it in your mind."

He slowly pulled upward, raising the shinai over Sakura's head with her still holding it in a good grip. She couldn't very well have let go or shifted her grip with Syaoran's fists clamped down on her own. She felt like she would never stop blushing. She could even smell his sweat... and wondered if he could smell her... But somehow his rock steady tone kept her concentrating on his words.

"Imagine that you are a cliff in the wild, and the sword is a river of pure white rapids. The fact that it will pass over and fall with crushing force is inevitable. The downward strike is inevitable. Your movements must also be inevitable. A force of nature. Not something you control; but something you direct..."

All of the class had stopped to watch Sakura and Syaoran. Syaoran was oblivious, but Sakura thought if she blushed any more her head would explode. But then time seemed to slow almost to a stop as Syaoran pressed her forward, forcing her hands into a downward strike. She could feel the air parting under the bamboo blade, the force rushing from Syaoran's muscles and her own into the force of the strike. She could truly feel the natural force, just like Syaoran had described it.

Then Syaoran let go of her and stepped around in front of her.

"Now do it again, but without my help. Strike out at me with all that force and don't forget to step forward and use you voice. Your opponent must feel that he is facing something completely solid, a rock wall of force, a crushing storm. Any sign of weakness or hesitation means utter failure," Syaoran spoke the almost poetic words with no sign of eloquence. His eyes were cold and hard. Several girls in the club, watching intently and hanging on his every word, gave sighs of longing. Even the boys were grudgingly taking Syaoran's words to heart. The sensei had tears in the corners of his eyes.

Sakura slowly concentrated, focusing on the instructions and trying to clear her mind of the embarrassed haze Syaoran's 'hands-on' teaching technique had caused. She sucked in her breath and prepared for the strike. She brought her shinai down in a perfect strike, but as she looked at Syaoran's solid stance, his cold eyes, and remembered his earlier comment to her and her brother, she hesitated. Rather than the proper stomping lunge she gave only a half step and her voice faltered as she let out an: 'EI!'

And then she sat down, hard. It took her a moment to realize what had happened with her head suddenly fuzzy. Then she looked up and saw Syaoran standing over her with his shinai gripped tightly in both hands. He had struck her over the head, hard. The other students and the sensei all began to protest but Syaoran let out what Sakura thought was a disappointed sigh. He then looked at Sakura and spoke in a voice only she could hear over the voices of the other students:

"Kinamoto Sakura. If that's the limits of your determination, then you'll be doomed to failure your whole life... You should..." he turned his back on her "... leave Tomoeda."

"Reed-kun! Striking a new student without her even having the proper protection? What are you thinking! Go run a few laps to cool your head!" the sensei spluttered, helping Sakura back to her feet. Syaoran didn't respond, and that was the last time he spoke directly to Sakura for quite a while.

***

"~~" Tomoyo made a sound like a cat's angry meow as she watched Syaoran strike Sakura from outside the dojo. She was taping the whole thing on her camcorder, but she stopped once Sakura fell down. She then saw Syaoran walk out of the dojo and start running laps. For a moment her eyebrows drew down and she frowned in his general direction. However, after a little bit she let out a sigh and looked at the camcorder.

"I suppose I'll forgive him just this once, since he let me see Sakura's cute blushing face and get it on tape..."

***

"He hit her over the head?" Eriol's incredulous voice filled their small room as he spoke on his cell phone to Nakuru. He burst out laughing at her reply "Hahaha, I would have given anything to see that!"

"..." Syaoran remained silent and finished his homework. He felt drained and annoyed, but he couldn't put a finger on what exactly he was upset about. His outburst at the dojo was hardly even on his mind anymore. He had cast Kinamoto Sakura aside as someone who would never have the nerve to change anything, and all Syaoran really wanted in his life was a change. Something that would shake the world to its core and free both he and his brother from the grip of fate.

"Hehe... wow. Well, hopefully that will teach her what playing around with the Kemono Kyoudai can cause. Right, see you tomorrow. Bye." Eriol hung up and looked with a kind of smug, approving face at Syaoran. However, he sobered after looking at Syaoran's expression for a moment. "Syaoran?"

"I'm tired..." Syaoran said, closing up his books. He then stood up and started to get undressed so he could get into his pajamas. Eriol gazed at him for another moment then sighed and finished up his own homework. He paused, however, when he felt magic power gather around Syaoran, and he looked over his shoulder to see what his brother was doing.

Syaoran snapped his fingers in front of a stuffed wolf on their dresser and the animal stirred and looked up at him, animated but still appearing like a plushie.

"Yes, Syaoran?" the wolf asked, its mouth not moving. Like their master, all of Syaoran's summons and creations were very formal and stiff.

"I don't want to dream tonight," Syaoran said. Eriol could see the glow of magic slipping from Syaoran to the wolf as the plushie siphoned energy from its master. It would regulate the flow of magic in Syaoran during the night so that his foretelling powers would be sealed. It made for restless sleep and weakness the next day, but Syaoran would often use it if he was upset to forget for one night that he had any powers at all. Again Eriol let out a sigh and then began preparing himself for bed as well.

"Yes, Syaoran," the wolf replied, after it had already begun the process of siphoning. It then went motionless again. Whether it was still animated or not was hard to tell, since it sat rock still... Very much like Syaoran, in all aspects.

"Syaoran..." Eriol said, sitting on the side of his bed and looking at his brother who had already laid down with his back to Eriol. Syaoran didn't respond. "Syaoran... someday we'll find a way to... to be happy despite..." Eriol couldn't think of the proper word to attach to their various problems "... despite... everything."

It was weak, but it had its intended effect. The brothers had a strong bond, and Syaoran could feel that Eriol believed in his own words, so he did as well. Rolling over, he gave Eriol a small, hopeful smile, and nodded. Eriol smiled, nodded, then turned off the light.

Cardcaptors Alternative Syaoran 1st Thread ~ Jouhou ~

...Woven

Anjin's Comments – So, first chapter. 'Thread', as it were... you know, with the threads of fate cliché and all. Right, hoped everyone got that. If you didn't understand some of the Japanese in here please don't be upset. Really nothing important was un-translated... and if you did understand it consider it a treat for your Japanophile-ness. I'll try to keep it to a minimum but... y'know... I can't very well call a 'shinai' a 'bamboo practice sword' every time. Nor am I gonna call 'sensei' 'teacher' or 'dojo' 'training hall'.

What's up with the chapter title, and why's it at the end? Hmm... can't say. I just didn't feel like putting the titles at the beginning and also I've decided to only use the names of anime OP or ED themes as chapter titles! Don't ask me why. Anyway I'm trying to find anime themes that fit the mood or feeling or meaning of the chapter in either lyrics or style. You'll notice that the first theme I used (Jouhou, you can find it on Youtube if you search for 'Es Otherwsie OP') from E's Otherwise is a song about the unknown and how it surrounds us. I thought this was a good introductory song to use since obviously I've just thrown you into a very odd parallel of the original Cardcaptors world where things are very different. Trust me, they're even more different than you know. Much more. I've got quite the deep and twisted plot ready.

Oh, and want to hear a great thing? I'm keeping my Original Characters in this to almost zero. All the main cast will be the original CCS cast, but playing completely different roles. It'll be fun, trust me. I know I've probably already ruffled some feathers with the pairings you saw in this chapter, but it'll only get better. I really wanted to try some things with Rika and Naoki, and I wanted to throw some random relationships at Syaoran such as his crush on Tomoyo just to see what will happen. Exciting right? I hope so.

I'd like to thank Wish-chan who is writing the New Trials CCS story since she's my inspiration in launching into this big work. I never would have had the courage to dedicate any time or effort into a CCS fic if she hadn't have proven that people are still interested in these things. I'm amazed by her dedication and really touched. I hope someday she reads this fic also, since I'm certainly an avid reader of hers!

Other notes or comments... hmm... Well I'll include more thoughts in the second chapter since this one is just an introduction. If you have any comments or concerns please write me at All kinds of contacts are welcome and appreciated. Look forward to Thread 2 here in a bit!

Next Thread Preview!

Eriol: Want richer, fuller hair? Want to bring out the true hue in you? New Syaoran moisturizes and revitalizes your follicles and brings energy back to your curls.

Announcer: Cardcaptors Alternative Syaoran 2nd Thread ~???~

Eriol: Because I'm worth it.


	2. 2nd Thread

"Syaoran, wake up. We've got work to do..." Eriol's voice interrupted Syaoran's dreamless sleep, and Syaoran sat up in bed.

Eriol was already up and changing into dark-colored clothes that would make him practically invisible at night. Syaoran quickly got up and started getting dressed in a similar suit. As he did he de-activated the spell that was siphoning his magical powers. He doubted he would need too much power, since the tingling sensation of magical forces at work was weak, but he liked to be prepared.

Finally Syaoran strapped his long two-handed sword to his back, shrugging to get it to hang comfortably. Eriol was also putting on his 'weapon', two leather bracelets with metal emblems that he secured around his wrists. Various symbols were worked into the bracelets, each representing a barrier that Eriol could activate. Eriol shook his right wrist back and forth a few times, also getting comfortable. Then the two brothers nodded at each other and headed out.

Not surprisingly Mizuki-san was at the door, waiting to wish them good luck. She looked concerned, but Eriol assured her that it would be a quick mission since the reading was very faint.

"It's nothing to worry about. We'll be back before you know it," he said, giving Mizuki a calming smile. She nodded, and looked at Syaoran, and he tried to also give her a reassuring smile, but it didn't come out quite right. He hoped she would just take it as his being tired.

* * *

"It's coming from near Penguin Park..." Eriol said, as they slipped through the dark and silent city. Syaoran didn't reply, but let out a yawn. Eriol cracked a small grin. "Let's clean it up and get back to bed."

As they neared the small park with the giant King Penguin slide that had given it its name, they could hear the sound of children's laughter echoing through the trees. They looked at each other, then stepped closer until they could make out a ghostly blue glow surrounding the park.

"Child spirits? I've never seen so many of them gather at one time..." Eriol said, quietly. The whole park was filled with blue orbs of spirit that were all whirling around in a huge, agitated cloud. Slowly, the brothers crept closer, trying to find the cause behind the huge gathering of ghosts. Suddenly Syaoran pointed and exclaimed:

"There's someone in there!"

Eriol looked and could just make out the form of a kid their age surrounded by all the blue light.

"They must have lured someone out in the middle of the night to sap away all their energy! With this many of them, whoever that is could collapse any second!" he said. Syaoran nodded and was already stepping forward, preparing for the exorcism.

"Rin! Pyou! Tou! Sha! Kai! Jin! Retsu! Zai! Zen!" Syaoran snapped off the 9 Kuji-in syllables in rapid succession, his hands flowing into the hand-seals that represented each phrase. He followed this with a Buddhist mantra, standing in front of the cloud of blue spirits, which had paused in their activity to watch this new arrival. In only a few seconds of chanting he was completely surrounded with a calm, forest-green aura that represented his power. He opened his eyes, which he had closed in concentration, and extended both hands forward, forming an 'x' with the first two fingers of each hand.

"KYU KYU NYO RITSURYO!" he yelled, completing the exorcism spell.

The blue spirits were blown back as a forest-green force pushed them, expanding outward from Syaoran's outstretched hands. As they scattered the figure that had been among them became clear, and Syaoran heard a startled exclamation from Eriol.

"It's... it's her!" he said, and Syaoran walked over to see what he was talking about. There, where the spirits had been dancing, was Kinamoto Sakura.

"A medium? They must have felt her presence when she moved in and they waited 'til it was night to call her out so they could drink her energy..." Syaoran said, moving over to look down at Sakura, who had collapsed and appeared to be sleeping or unconscious.

"Well, that was pointless. Let's go home..." Eriol began to walk away, but he paused and turned back when he noticed Syaoran wasn't following. Syaoran's eyes were narrowed in disappointment.

"We can't just leave her here. She'll get sick from the cold, or worse," he said, his tone reprimanding his brother for being overly callous. Eriol sighed.

"She's just a little puppy from Kereberos. Kereberos's wanko-chan. We don't need to worry about her," Eriol said matter-of-factly, and turned his back again. However, Syaoran bent down and picked up Sakura, holding her awkwardly in his arms until he could find an easy way to carry her. Finally he draped her over his back and held onto her arms.

"I'm taking her back to her house, at least. I can follow the trail of her spirit," he said, stubbornly. Eriol looked at him for a long time, then shook his head in disgust and followed his brother.

"Whatever, let's just hurry," Eriol said.

* * *

They found Sakura's house easy enough, following the trail left by her cherry-blossom pink aura. She was a Medium, so her heart and soul were open to the supernatural world. It wasn't something she could control, and it was like a beacon to all the hungry spirits in the twilight world to come and devour her energy.

"This wanko-chan is going to bring us all sorts of trouble, even when she's not doing her Kereberos thing... I should have done a more in-depth foretelling before this all started. I would have found some way to keep her from coming to Tomoeda. What a headache..." Eriol said, complaining all the way. Syaoran went on in silence with Sakura's chin resting on his shoulder.

'She seemed like such a weakling... but she doesn't feel that soft...' Syaoran thought, with his hands on Sakura's arms. Then he winced. 'What... the heck am I thinking about?'

"The window on the 2nd floor is open..." Eriol pointed out. Syaoran looked up and saw that one of the windows on the 2nd story of the small house was open and that a large tree was facing it.

"She must have climbed down? The spirits must have really been controlling her for her to go through all this trouble... her spirit resonance must be..." Syaoran said, trailing off in thought. Finally he shook his head. "Never mind, let's just drop her off and get out of here."

"No objections there..." Eriol muttered.

With two quick, acrobatic leaps Syaoran jumped into the tree and then through the open window. Eriol followed him just as quickly. Both had learned to be quite agile through their various adventures, though Eriol was a bit slower than Syaoran. By the time he landed within Sakura's room Syaoran had already laid her on her bed. Eriol shrugged and turned around, ready to leave, but Syaoran stopped him.

"Hey..." Syaoran said, in a quick whisper. Eriol turned to look at him with one eyebrow raised and there was a pause. Eriol couldn't tell that Syaoran was blushing, since they were in a dark room. "It's... cold... Shouldn't we... tuck her in?"

Eriol's mouth almost dropped open. He barely caught himself from raising his voice.

"Are... you... serious?" he asked in a furious whisper, his eyebrow twitching.

"But..." Syaoran started. Just then a cloud that had been concealing the moon parted, letting a beam of moonlight shine in through the window and onto the sleeping form of Sakura.

Syaoran felt the grip of fate.

Drawing in his breath, he looked at Sakura's sleeping face. It was his first time seeing the angelic face of a young girl sleeping. A feeling of peace settled over him just looking at it, and he felt his blush draining away. He reached out to take the blanket so he could cover her, but he was interrupted.

"Sakura?" Touya's voice was heard, and the door opened. Eriol didn't hesitate. Throwing out one arm he barked a magical command. His bracelet flashed with deep blue power.

"Barrier of Time! Stop!" he said.

There was a flash, and everything paused. The door did not open any more, but they could both clearly see Touya frozen in time. The look on his face was normal, so he probably hadn't seen them before the spell took him. Both brothers were out the window in an instant, Syaoran making sure to close the window behind them so Touya wouldn't be suspicious.

When they were on the ground they both took a moment to calm their racing hearts. Eriol looked back up at the window, panting a little.

"It'll only be a few more seconds. Let's just get out of here," he said. He then looked at Syaoran with narrowed eyes. "What's gotten into you, anyway?"

"I... don't know..." Syaoran said. The peaceful feeling was gone. He shook his head. "Let's just go home."

* * *

Sakura didn't remember anything of the night before. Neither the time stop or her brother barging in had woken her from her deep sleep, and her dreams had been nice enough. However, she felt a little tired as she went to school the next day. Since she was keeping an eye on the Reed brothers she noticed that they also had some dark blotches at the corners of their eyes from lack of sleep, but they didn't seem the least bit effected by it. As she went to sit down she frowned a little as Eriol looked at her with cold disdain and Syaoran pretended she didn't exist. At least that's the way she thought he was acting. He had such an unreadable face that she couldn't really tell.

'He looks like... a wolf, or a fox... I can't tell what kind of expression he has, like an animal. Maybe if he had a tail I could see if it was wagging or not...' Sakura thought idly, not realizing that she was staring at Syaoran quite obviously. Tomoyo had to nudge her when it was her turn to read from the book they were studying. Luckily Terada-sensei didn't seem to notice.

"The legend of the Demons' Night Parade is a clear sign of what happens when modern progress meets ancient traditions. The citizens of what is now Kyoto feared that, as more efficient tools were invented to make their lives easier, the old tools that they had used for so long would become jealous. Then, one night it all came to a head when thousands of s... sp... spi-... spirit... spirit inhabited tools known as tsukumo-gami paraded through the town in a horrible gh... ghostly... display..." Sakura read, trailing off at every mention of things supernatural. After a moment's pause she moaned "Hoe~ Sensei~ this is too spooky!"

"Haha, don't worry Kinamoto-san," Terada said, giving his reassuring teacher smile. "These things are just legends and folk tales. However..." he returned to his serious expression "... We should remember to apply these things to our modern times. Now that we have gadgets for everything and the cities are getting so big, are we remembering our cultural heritage and the traditions that make us Japanese? Japan is a place rich with traditions and beliefs, but all of these are becoming a thing of the past. Is that alright? The Japanese people used to be so good at living in harmony with nature and all its 'Gods', but would you say we're the same now?"

Everyone seemed mystified by the teacher's sudden serious monologue, but a few seconds after he finished speaking the bell rang marking the first break of the day. Sakura gave a sigh of relief. All the talk about nature spirits and tsukumo-gami was making her turn pale. The only thing worse than a cockroach that she could imagine would be if a spoon or cup came walking up to her yelling at her for abandoning it.

"Sakura-chan?" Sakura heard a voice calling her, and she looked up to see Naoki beckoning for her to come outside the classroom. Curious, Sakura went out. Naoki was waiting for her, and smiled as she walked out the classroom door.

"Sakura-chan, I just wanted to ask you something..." Naoki said, adjusting her glasses.

"Hm?" Sakura said, tilting her head.

"Are you... involved in supernatural things, like the Reed brothers?" Naoki asked, her voice innocent.

"H... Hoe?" Sakura said, looking utterly confused.

"Sorry, it's just that... most people are afraid of ghosts, but you're on a completely different level. What I've noticed is that someone who reacts that much must have had a... personal experience. So... have you?" Naoki asked, adjusting her glasses again. Her glasses caught a glint of sunlight and flashed, giving her an ominous look.

"N... No way~" Sakura said, looking pained. "If I had seen something like a g-ghost in real life I'd be in the hospital with white hair by now. I'm way to much of a scaredy cat to take something like that..."

"Really?" Naoki touched one finger to her chin, looking thoughtful. Then she smiled again, her face returning to its innocent state. "Then, I'd recommend you stay away from the Reed brothers. Those two are destined to always run into terrifying things, I'm sure."

"What? The Reed brothers?" Sakura waved her hands in an embarrassed, dismissive gesture. "I'm not really that interested in them! The only reason I asked about them yesterday is because my dad knows their dad, and he told me they'd be going to school here. I didn't know anything about all this before I came here... Is Tomoeda... really such a strange place?"

"Not if you don't go looking for trouble..." Naoki again adjusted her glasses. But then her grin re-appeared. "And make sure to always give your offerings at the local shrine!" She turned away and headed back into the classroom.

"What... was that all about?" Sakura murmured, looking in confusion at Naoki's retreating back.

* * *

At lunch time Eriol, Syaoran and Nakuru all paused by the edge of the picnic blanket they all usually sat on. Yukito and Touya were already there. Yukito looked at the three of them with a face of innocent curiosity, as if he didn't know why they were hesitating.

"What's wrong? Sit down..." he said, tilting his head.

"I don't eat with dogs..." Eriol said coldly, not taking his eyes off of Touya. Touya met his gaze with an unimpressed look, then sighed, shrugged, and stood up.

"I guess it's best if I eat somewhere else..." he said, but Yukito caught his arm.

"Everyone, lunch time is a sacred time of relaxation and food. Basically, where there's food, things like grudges and opposition cannot exist. Anyone who wants to sit down and eat on this blanket must cast aside all prejudices and treat this time of lunch with proper respect!" Yukito's voice was quiet but firm. Everyone was surprised, including Touya. No one knew exactly how serious Yukito was about eating. However, after a moment his sunny smile returned and he gestured for everyone to be seated.

"Now, sit, and eat," he said, closing the discussion.

Syaoran was the first to sit down, since he didn't really care. As far as he was concerned he and Eriol would always have problems with or without Kereberos, so there was no use worrying about every little thing. Besides, what Touya had said the day before made a little sense to him. Even he wished sometimes that magic didn't exist in the world. Or fate.

"Yukito, you're serious about things that are a complete waste of time..." Eriol muttered, also sitting down. He ate in silence for the rest of the meal, not once glancing at either Yukito or Touya.

"Yuki~" Nakuru whined, but left it at that without voicing anything else. Sitting down with a sigh she also dug into her lunch.

Time passed with only the sound of the wind. Then, suddenly, Touya's chopsticks paused halfway on their journey to his mouth.

"My sister... is a Medium..." he said, quietly. Eriol coughed on whatever he had been eating and the other three looked over at Touya with guarded expressions.

"Sakura is?" Yukito asked, tilting his head a little. Touya nodded.

"She attracts spirits... but... she can't see them herself. I can, though. Ever since she was a little kid she's been followed around by all sorts of spirits... bad and good. She's had lots of frightening experiences, all her life. I've tried to protect her from what I can but... there's times that I can't protect her..." Touya continued, his voice slightly pained.

"... and?" Eriol asked, coldly unimpressed by Touya's speech. Touya looked up at him, anger clear on his face for a moment before he got himself under control.

"I just want you to know that there's a normal, human reason why we're part of Kereberos, trying to seal away the magic of the world! I'm fighting for Sakura's sake!" Touya said, gritting his teeth a little.

"You want us to sympathize with you?" Eriol said, looking disgusted. "We of Spinel fight to stop any force that threatens humanity, using the magic we were born with. We don't do it because these things are a bother directly to us, we do it because it's right. Don't try to impress us with your story. We don't use our magic for such petty reasons."

"So you think fate and destiny should just continue dictating our lives? That people who are born under unlucky circumstances will always be unlucky? My sister should always have to suffer because that's just the way it is?" Touya demanded, his voice starting to rise as he lost control of his temper. Yukito looked torn between wanting to interrupt and being interested in what Eriol was saying. It was the first time Eriol had voiced anything like what he was saying now. Syaoran looked at his brother in a new light. He never really thought of why they fought against the spirits that went wild. It had always just been something they did.

"Fate's not something that can be defeated that easily!" Eriol said, contemptuously. "It's not a matter of wanting to or not wanting to fight against it. If we're human we accept that, even with magic, there are things we can't do. Things we can't change."

'But... weren't we going to fight against fate... brother?' Syaoran thought, in his heart.

"Giving up also won't change anything. Deciding it can't be done is worse than running away. It's not like you'd even be changing anything. You'd still be fighting against the wild to protect everyone... Kereberos isn't..." Touya said, calming down a little, but he was cut off by Eriol.

"We'll never join Kereberos! No matter how much monologue you try to throw at us it'll never be right! If you're so stubborn about your side, accept that we're just as stubborn about ours!" Eriol's voice made it clear he expected the argument to end there.

"Why? Why are you so stubborn? Because if we got rid of magic that would mean you wouldn't be special anymore? That you're all-powerful daddy Clow Reed wouldn't be all-powerful anymore? You and your brother would have to learn to live like normal kids all of the sudden? Is that what pisses you off?" Touya shouted back, a hefty dose of scorn in his voice.

Everyone was shocked. Yukito looked sad, Nakuru looked about ready to scratch Touya in the eyes. Eriol was pale, his face surprised and a little horrified. He looked quickly at Syaoran, then back at Touya. His mouth moved, trying to find something to throw back at him, but he couldn't find the words.

"So?" Syaoran was the one who finally spoke up. Everyone turned to look at him and he glared up at Touya, who had risen to his feet. "If we're talking about pride, isn't it prideful to go out looking to change the whole world for the sake of one person? No matter how many problems it causes for everyone?"

"Sakura's... worth that to me," Touya said. His blatant reply surprised Syaoran enough that he fell silent, though there had been more he had wanted to say.

'One person is worth... all that?' Syaoran thought. Looking around at Eriol, Yukito and Nakuru. Even for his brother, for Eriol... would he do something like that? Something like trying to destroy fate, and end magic? Would he bear other people's hatred and scorn and fight against people who were honest and normal? 'Kinamoto Sakura is... worth that?'

"You can't... be serious..." Syaoran muttered, more shocked than anything else. He was about to start up again with Touya, but Touya was already closing up his lunch box and walking off.

"Sorry Yuki. I understand you guys have your reasons, but I just can't take it all sitting down. I think I'll eat alone for the time being, so you guys can figure out what you really want to do with your powers," Touya said, over his shoulder. Yukito merely nodded, understanding, but his face still looked sad.

"Good riddance," Eriol said, with a note of finality.

* * *

That night the phone rang in the Kinamoto household, just as the sun was setting.

"Hello?" Sakura shyly answered the phone. Since they had just recently moved in it was odd for someone to call so late at night. The Kereberos staff usually called them on private lines so... who could it be?

"Sakura..." The voice on the other end was mechanical, obviously disguised by computer equipment. "Tengu have appeared in the forest reserve."

"Ho... Hoe? Who is this?" Sakura said, though her eyes became serious as she heard the mentoin of Tengu.. demon birds... dangerous to any humans they came across.

"They will appear tonight," the voice said, completely ignoring Sakura's question. Then there was a click and a dial tone... whoever it was had hung up after delivering the message.

Sakura said nothing, but stared at the phone receiver with an expression full of alarm and suspicion.

* * *

Somewhere a shadowy figure took her hand off the phone receiver and looked over at her companion.

"And now we'll see what Sakura-chan is really doing here..." she said.

The other figure nodded silently.

* * *

The forest reserve was a deep wood at the edge of Tomoeda, full of old legends and shrines from back when the area was still barely developed. It had been preserved as a monument to the traditions of the region. It was also a favorite haunting-ground for spirits. The Reed brothers had been their many a night fighting back anything that tried to make a break for the city to cause chaos. They were there that night too.

Sakura and Touya went by motorcycle. Touya drove, dressed all in a black leather suit, with Sakura holding onto his waist. She was dressed in a pink jacket and jeans, and her face was worried. Touya also had a serious expression.

'Following mysterious messages to a dark forest at night... is a really bad idea...' he thought, but Sakura had been adamant about their going.

"It's what dad sent us here to do!" she had said, and that had decided it.

The two groups met at the entrance to the reserve. The Reed brothers, Yukito and Nakuru all turned to look as the motorcycle pulled up. Touya and Sakura stepped down and took off their helmets, and for a moment everyone simply stared at each other, each trying to predict the actions of the other.

"Go home, it's a school night," Eriol said, at last.

"That's my line. I told you you could have some time to think about joining Kereberos or not... I didn't say you could go back to using your magic willy-nilly. This is our job. Civilians should stay home," Touya shot back, his face and voice grim.

There was a metallic sound, and Syaoran's two-handed sword was free of its sheath, his bangs casting a shadow over his eyes as he bowed his head a little. His face was also grim. Nakuru looked at him, smiled thinly and looked over her shoulder at Eriol and Yukito.

"You two can take care of the Tengu. We'll keep them out of your hair," she said.

Eriol nodded, turning. Yukito looked at Touya, let out a long sigh, and followed after him.

"You're going to fight us?" Touya said, looking incredulously at Nakuru but making no move to follow the other two. "That's idiotic!"

"There's no reason to do this! The important thing is sealing the Tengu!" Sakura said, her voice pained. She was looking at Syaoran, who met her gaze cooly and kept his blade raised.

"Eriol and Yuki are more than enough for the birds. Me'n Syaoran here are just going to play with you a bit, test your mettle. If you lose..." Nakuru said, gritting her teeth and grinning with battle lust "... how about you leave Tomoeda?"

"You're crazy!" Touya said, then he put out his leather-gloved hand "I take back all the diplomatic things I said. For people like you, suppression is the only thing you'll understand!"

A circle of magic, brown like the Earth but glowing with living energy, appeared around Touya on the ground. His hair was raised as powerful wind rushed up around him.

"Blade that hides the power of the Earth! I, Touya summon you under contract... Daichi!" Touya said, his hand reaching out, grasping. In a flash of brown energy there was a blade in his hand; a dai-katana... a huge katana whose blade was as tall as Touya. The naked blade glistened in the moonlight. "Let's get this over with..." he growled.

"Greatest hunter, lend thy daughter your blessing..." Nakuru held her hand up in front of her face, fingers curled slightly as if waiting to seize something. "Artemis!" A scythe, silver like the moon, appeared. Nakuru caught it and held it with the blade toward the ground. Then she lifted it and spun it in a glistening blur over her head. "I'll make you eat your words. All of them."

Syaoran was not speaking, but he watched Sakura with his sword drawn. Sakura met his gaze steadily, her expression slowly fading from pain and sadness to one of resignation. Then, surprisingly, something flashed in Sakura's eyes, and her childish chin raised a little bit. For the first time since he had met her the day before Syaoran saw determination appear in Kinamoto Sakura's eyes.

And for that moment, Syaoran's breath was taken away... because Kinamoto Sakura was beautiful. Her eyes blazed with a petite green flame that shone like emerald, her small mouth formed a stubborn line, her delicate eyebrows drawn down in concentration. It was then that Syaoran realized that the silly girl that had laughed at herself so often since she first appeared was not the real Sakura... or rather it wasn't her whole self. The girl that had only taken a half-step while trying to strike in the dojo was like a Sakura that had been sheathed when out of battle, but now she stood in her true form. He could see her soul, and he realized that he had underestimated her greatly. Gritting his teeth, he adjusted his grip on his sword. Regardless, she was his enemy right now, and he doubted the fight would be anything like he had thought it would.

"Blade that hides the power of my star! I, Sakura summon you under contract..." Sakura called out, a cherry-blossom pink aura swirling around her and forming a magic circle much more vibrant than her brother's had been "... Koboshi!"

A long rapier appeared in Sakura's outstretched hand. It had no basket-hilt, but looked more like a training weapon. Where the circular hand-guard would have been on a normal fencing rapier there was a five-point star whose points curved backward toward Sakura's hand. The blade was thin, keen, and bright. Just like Sakura, it had a plain appearance but glowed with an inner beauty and power.

Clenching his jaw and dropping himself into the void of battle-hypnosis, Syaoran crouched, tensed, and leaped forward, already bringing his sword around in a wide arc. Sakura dodged, barely moving since the move was too broad, too obvious. Syaoran wasn't through, though, and he paused the sword half-swung and changed its direction, shifting his body and weight perfectly to accent the abrupt redirection. His movements flowed perfectly, losing none of the momentum of the original swing. It was that single movement that made Sakura realize that the boy she was facing was a swordmaster the likes of which the world had not seen since the medieval era.

Dodging, Sakura tried to regain her balance enough to counter, but Syaoran was still attacking. Since his blade was heavier than hers he had to continue his sweeping strikes relentlessly lest Sakura get a chance to seek an opening with her more nimble blade. Still, while leaping on the balls of her feet away from each new attack, Sakura's eyes were taking in all of Syaoran's movements and stances, looking for the slightest thing that would let her act.

Nakuru and Touya's battle seemed laborious and lumbering compared to that of the children. Both their weapons were large and their only available attacks were wide, sweeping slashes that left gleaming crescents in the air as the moonlight shone off of their blades. Nakuru was slowly forcing Touya back, though, as he kept glancing in Sakura's direction, unable to concentrate with his sister also fighting against a formidable opponent. Twice he almost dodged too late and both times he saw wisps of his own dark hair float by as Nakuru's Artemis nearly cleft his skull. He knew the fight was nothing to play around with... Nakuru was blank-eyed, concentrating only on the fight, and he knew she wouldn't hesitate to injure him at least. Not kill, of course... but injure... maybe badly if he was stupid about it. He gritted his teeth and tore his eyes away from his sister, trying to focus on Nakuru's nimble movements and whispering silver strikes.

There was a metallic ring, and Sakura finally managed to catch the blow from Syaoran's sword against her own. She had to place her off-hand against the blade of the rapier to support it as Syaoran shifted his weight, pressing to try to throw her off balance.

The moment of pause was all Sakura had been hoping for. She jumped backwards, letting Syaoran withdraw his attack. However, the fact that she had stopped his momentum already gave her the slight advantage she had been seeking. Now it was her turn. Syaoran found himself helpless to counter as an absolute barrage of silver thrusts came at him. Sakura's arm seemed to blur as she jabbed in all directions, trying to catch any slip or unbalance in Syaoran.

Syaoran didn't panic, nor did he show any signs of worry. His deep brown eyes flicked back and forth, barely keeping up with the lightning-fast thrusts. His stance was solid, and he simply shifted his body whichever way was necessary for the attacks to pass harmlessly by him. Then, in an instant, he saw an opening. Crouching, he thrust forward, pushing his blade straight at Sakura.

There was a whisper of movement, and Syaoran felt something pass by his head, and Sakura was gone. He turned, stepping back, and saw that she had dodged to his side... but it wasn't just a dodge. Syaoran felt warmth on his forehead and his right eye started to sting. He wiped it with the back of his hand and saw a bright smear of red.

'She... cut my forehead, right above my eye? She found the absolute best attack for the situation... a lightning-fast tactical strike to limit my visibility and depth perception...' Syaoran thought, losing his concentration for a moment as he looked in slight awe at Sakura. She met his gaze with her fiercely determined eyes.

'I'm at a disadvantage... I need to end this within the next few seconds or it'll only get worse...' Syaoran thought, closing his eyes to clear his mind. He shifted his grip on his sword, holding it more loosely so he could switch hands more easily as he swung, thus making it more maneuverable. He then reached up to wipe away the blood one more time. He'd have to end it before the blood could run down his forehead again or Sakura wouldn't hesitate to strike again in his weakness. It would be a matter of milliseconds.

Sakura was just about to lunge forward with another round of attacks, when Syaoran acted. He jumped forward and suddenly his large sword became a cyclone of flashing strikes. Sakura was completely thrown off by the swiftness of the attacks. There was no power in them, but Sakura still couldn't bring herself to block them. As soon as she would raise her rapier to block he would already be coming in from a different angle. All she could do was keep her blade centered to block any attacks right at her body. After only a breath her sleeves were covered in small cuts.

Then it happened. A sudden thrust by Syaoran, straight at Sakura's face. She saw it coming and shifted her body, letting it pass by her head so she could get within Syaoran's range and attack him while he was still extended in the thrust. However, even as it was passing by her face the blade paused.

'What? He's going to change it into a slice? But his body is extended and... there's no way he can put any power behind it... Wouldn't it be a useless attack?' Sakura thought, feeling her body freeze. She shifted her weight again, trying to leap backward before Syaoran could execute his attack but...

Syaoran's blade was suddenly in the ground on Sakura's left. She blinked a few times. When had it moved? She hadn't seen the movement at all. Then, with a great howling Syaoran's attack finally registered. Sakura was pushed off her feet by the wind created by the strike, and she fell on her rear hard. Her clothes were slashed from her right shoulder to her left thigh. Any second she expected blood to start staining her shirt and pants, but there was nothing. Under the ripped clothing her skin was untouched.

"H.. Hoe~?" Sakura looked up at Syaoran, who was standing over her with his sword extended. Blood was running over his right eye, which he had closed.

"SAKURA!!" Touya yelled, feeling the force of Syaoran's magic strike and turning as if to run to her. Instant mistake. He barely managed to notice and raised his left arm defensively. Nakuru's Artemis passed through the flesh of his arm from wrist to elbow in a single strike, throwing a splash of blood into the air. "Tch!" Touya bit back a yell of pain and fell backward, bringing Daichi up with his good right hand to block any further attacks. However, the battle was already over.

"Game over, doggies," Eriol's voice drifted to them and he and Yukito appeared. They were both sweating with exertion, but neither had received any injuries. "The Tengu have been sealed, Mr. Dog is crippled, and little Ms. Wanko-chan has been hit with Syaoran's patented Soul Eater, an attack directly at the spirit that draws out all your energy and dispels it into the Earth. It'll be hours before little wanko-chan can even stand on her own again."

Touya stood up, clutching his injured arm and glaring.

"Soul... Eater...?" Sakura's weak voice was barely heard, but her eyes were wide with confusion and fear. She looked up at Syaoran but he was already sheathing his sword and turning away. Their eyes met, and Syaoran paused. He didn't know why there was so much confusion in her gaze. Was she having trouble understanding that she had lost? That didn't seem to be the case. Then what was it?

"Today is our victory. It might be time for you to reconsider things... Tomoeda isn't the place for you two. It would be best for you to go home," Eriol said. His eyes were on Touya, and it was obvious he was still angry at what Touya had said to him during lunch.

There was nothing else to be said. Yukito laid a hand on Eriol to prevent him from continuing, and his sad gaze met Touya's. Touya looked away. Slowly he walked over to help Sakura up. For a moment Yukito looked like he'd go offer a hand but Nakuru caught his gaze and shook her head. Yukito sighed and nodded. Then, with Syaoran, they departed, leaving Touya and Sakura alone in the forest.

* * *

After Nakuru and Yukito had parted from them Syaoran and Eriol walked home in silence, each thinking about the day. Finally, Eriol paused. Syaoran kept walking for a second, then stopped and looked back.

"Syaoran... I'm sorry... At lunch..." he tried to say more, but trailed off. He had promised to fight against fate with Syaoran, and then ridiculed that very thing to Touya.

"Eriol... I've known for a long time that you really like being a mage. It's because your Clow Reed's son, and so am I... We're both magic-users, and we're not going to change that by fighting. We fight because it's what we need to do, because it's right, remember? I think it's more important for us to find a way to be happy with our fates, rather than looking to destroy them," Syaoran said, his brown eyes softening as he met Eriol's gaze.

"Syao... ran..." Eriol's voice was weak. His brother's words were like sun through the clouds. He thought he had betrayed the only person in the world that understood him, but it turned out that Syaoran had understood him even more than he thought. They really were brothers... the only person the other could trust in the whole world. He moved forward, and suddenly hugged Syaoran, placing his head against Syaoran's chest. He kept his head low so Syaoran couldn't see that he had tears in the corners of his eyes.

"Hey... this isn't like you... Don't look so depressed. We'll find a way to be happy. Somehow, these last few days, I've started to think something like that is possible. We'll find a way together. Eriol," Syaoran patted his brother's head then gently pulled out of the hug.

"Right..." Eriol said, his normal prideful tone coming back into his voice as he recovered from his emotional display. Even though Syaoran was talking about finding happiness, he felt happy right then because he had someone like his brother to be there for him. "We're Clow Reed's sons, right? We'll definitely do it."

* * *

"Sakura... Hey Sakura!" Touya shook Sakura as she stood with her back to a tree back in the clearing where the fight had taken place. Her eyes were far away and she still looked confused and very frightened. Touya had spent a few moments tying off a bandage on his arm to stop the bleeding so he could get them home.

Sakura looked up at him as if not seeing him. She had his big leather coat draped around her shoulders to cover up the places where her clothes had been slashed open. She hugged her arms around herself.

"Onii-chan... why did Reed Syaoran know that skill...?" Sakura asked, her voice very weak and quavering.

Touya froze. He had hoped she wouldn't have noticed, that she wouldn't put two and two together, but Sakura was too smart for that. Of course she would know.

The technique called Soul Eater that drained an opponent's energy was developed specifically as an anti-mage fighting style. It had been developed by a master swordsman, and he was the only person they had ever seen use it.

Namely, their father. Kinamoto Fujitaka.

Cardcaptors Alternative Syaoran 2nd Thread ~Kiseki no Umi~

… Woven

Anjin's Comments – Yay! Second Thread is done! The title of this thread is 'Sea of Miracles'. Why? Well, you'll remember that every thread is named after an anime opening or ending theme. To see this thread's theme you'll need to look for 'Lodoss War OP' on Youtube or whatever. I recommend watching the shorter version unless you want to get the whole song (which is also okay). I chose this song to represent this chapter because of the duels at the end. Parn and Deedlit from Lodoss War remind me a lot of Sakura and Syaoran from this story. Syaoran is like a silent knight while Sakura is a lot like a nimble, nature-loving elf. Plus nothing says fantasy and fighting like Lodoss War... except Utawarerumono... I'll probably use the song from that here in a bit too.

Well, a few notes about this chapter. It's hard writing a real serious story using kids because you have to be really careful about certain things. For instance, if Syaoran really had cut Sakura's clothes from shoulder to thigh her pants would've fallen off... yeah, not gonna happen. Although, I guess if she was half-jumping backward at the moment her legs would be farther forward than her hips which would sorta explain it.

I hope nobody knows who the two mysterious figures are yet. That would make me a failure as an author. Well, maybe you'll have guessed at least one of them, maybe? Don't know. I guess it'll be more obvious as I move along.

I wanted to throw more stuff in here like maybe even Tomoyo seeing the fight and recording it? But it just didn't flow out when I was writing and I don't like going back and adding scenes in since that makes it feel choppy.

I noticed that a lot of people have read the first chapter but no one has done any reviews yet. I understand since there's like a billion new fanfics each day and no one knows if it'll just be one chapter then peter out and die, so I can assure you that I'm dedicated to this one! Feel free to write up a review or two of what you think of the story. Since it's a fanfic please accept that there might be missed punctuation or maybe a mis-spelling or two in there. I'd rather like analysis of the characters and the plot. What do you think of what I've done with everyone? It'll get even more crazy, trust me.

Oh, and one last thing about the Japanese I'm using. In the first chapter Eriol called Sakura and Touya 'Kereberos no Inume', which means 'Dogs of Kereberos'... only more like a swearword (the 'me' at the end adds vulgarity to it... inu of course means dog). Then he always calls Sakura 'wanko-chan' which means 'puppy'. Wanko is a baby word made up of the words 'wan' (bark, the sound a dog makes), and 'ko' (child). So... little-bark... or puppy. Same as Nyanko which means kitten.

Comments always welcome at anjinforeverATgmailDOTcom

Next Thread Preview!

Rika: Want to start your day off right? Make sure to eat a healthy breakfast of juice, toast and a big bowl of Syaoran with milk! It'll give you the energy you need to get the most out of your day!

Announcer: Card Capters Alternative Syaoran 3rd Thread ~???~

Rika: They're gr-r-reat!


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